The New Legend of Korra
by yasha012
Summary: Mako was left to the Equalists. A sacrifice to save Korra. Korra, with Tenzin and his family, fled Republic City. Now, she's back and ready to fight for peace once more, this time as a fully realized Avatar. Read for the full summary. First chapter is a preview. DISCONTINUED! (Temporarily, at least.)
1. Previews and Profiles

**DESCRIPTION OF STORY:**

Mako was left to the Equalists. A sacrifice to save Korra. The leaders of Republic City were willing to give anything to save Korra, so when Amon said he wanted Mako, they didn't refuse. In fact, they gave him willingly, almost gladly. Of course, they didn't actually give him to them. They simply led them to where he was. Tenzin was the only one opposed to this idea. A fight had ensued, and with much struggle and help from the city's leaders (Tenzin excluded), Mako was captured. With Mako in custody, the Equalists freed Korra who, with Tenzin and his family, fled Republic City. That was two years ago. Now, she's back and ready to fight for peace once more, this time as a fully realized Avatar. Things in the city are much worse than before, and it seems there's someone ELSE fighting the Equalists already! Now, with the help of old friends, Korra does her best to stand up to the old threat, and regain something she lost so long ago. Bolin and Korra join forces and try to save Republic City while also trying to figure out just where their old ally is. Side by side, they fight the Equalists, trying to figure out just what happened to Mako, and where he is.

* * *

**Main Character Profiles:**

**Mako: **Mako is a nineteen-year-old firebender. He's an orphan and spent most of his life caring for his younger brother, Bolin. He can bend fire and shoot lightning, as well as redirect it. He's cool and calculating, and has a very calm, serious, silent personality. He is a skilled bender and is skilled in martial arts as well. The last place he was seen was in a dungeon at Amon's headquarters. No one has seen him in over two years.

**Bolin:** Bolin is a seventeen-year-old earthbender who can also bend metal. He's an orphan who has been cared for by his older brother for much of his life. He's still goofy and easygoing, but has also become noticeable calmer.

**Korra: **Korra is the nineteen-year-old Avatar. She fled Republic City with Tenzin and his family two years ago, but has recently returned. She can bend all four elements, is learning how to bend metal, and can redirect lightning. She's still the same Korra from before for the most part, except one big difference: she's become very cautious.

******A/N So they're OOC. Sue me. I only changed their personalities a bit because of what they've all been through in the two years prior to this story. I'll get into more detail on what all happened later in the story. Anyway, all these profiles are basically what their like in the beginning of the story. They might change later.**  



	2. Heading Home

As she rode on the special Water Tribe Ferry headed toward Air Temple Island, it was all Korra could do to prepare herself for what she might see. She hadn't been there in over two years. How much had things changed? She didn't know. And she wasn't sure she wanted to. She'd heard so many horrible things while she was gone. How the Equalists had taken over the city. How so many benders had lost their lives fighting for their bending. How the city was in ruin. Things were _not_ looking good for Republic City.

_'How could I let this happen?'_

She shook her head sadly. How _could_ she let this happen? Things had gotten _way_ out of hand, _way_ too fast, and she didn't know what to do. She wasn't sure how to deal with things anymore. Sure, she was a fully realized Avatar, but that didn't make her a fully realized _genius._ She was still only about as smart as your average sixteen-year-old Avatar can be. She would never let any of this show though. The old Korra would have, but not the new one. Never the new one. She couldn't afford to do things like that anymore. She was more powerful than ever before, meaning that she was in more danger than ever. Doing things like that would only put her at risk. Besides, it was doing stuff like that had gotten her captured on that day. She still couldn't believe what the city's leaders had done to set her free.

_'Oh Mako… I'm so sorry… It's all my fault you ended up there.'_

But… Now that she thought about it, he probably wasn't there long.

_'Of course he wasn't! I mean, come on, Korra! This is Mako you're talking about here! Ol' Mr. Hat Trick probably escaped the minute he was caught!'_

As comforting as those thoughts were, she couldn't stop the nagging feeling that she was wrong. Very, _very_ wrong. What if he _didn't_ make it out? What if he was still there right now?

_'No. He made it out. I know he did.'_

She looked up at the dark midnight sky.

_'He had to.'_

**A/N Sorry it's so short!**


	3. Air Temple Island

"_Tenzin, will I ever see him again?"_

"_You will see him again Korra, for fate has bound you together. You _will_ see him again. That much is certain."_

* * *

**FLASHBACK**

_Korra, Tenzin, and his family were on Tenzin's Bison, heading out of the city as fast as possible. Korra was very upset. She was hysterical. She was furious and extremely sad. She was sobbing. Tenzin looked at her sadly._

"_Korra, I'm so sorry."_

"_No you're not! No one is! No one cares that Mako's going to suffer now!"_

"_I do care Korra."_

_Jinora, Ikki, and the others piped in too._

"_I do too." Said Jinorra.  
_

_"Same here! Same here!" Ikki said while bouncing up and down._

"_I care too, Korra." Pema said with a gentle smile on her face._

"_Who's Mako?" Meelo asked._

**END FLASHBACK**

'_I can't believe we're finally going back.'_

Korra looked down at the water below, over the side of the boat.

_'And I'm not sure that I want to.'_

"Korra, are you alright?"

"Yeah, Tenzin. I'm fine. Just… Worried."

"About what?"

"What we might find. What we might see. Things have changed a lot since we've been here last, and not for the best. I'm just worried about how much damage has actually been done."

"That's not all is it?"

She sighed.

"I'm also worried about whether or not I can fix this. I mean, what if we came too late? It's been two whole years. Anything could have happened since then."

"I don't know how bad the damage is, and I don't know what all has happened since we left. But what I do know Korra, is that if anyone can repair the damage that's been done, it's you."

She looked back down at the water again.

"Thanks Tenzin. But I still don't know if I'm ready."

"My father often wondered the same thing as he was preparing to fight Firelord Ozi and end the war. But he knew wasn't alone, and you won't be either. You and Avatar Aang are very different. But one thing you do have in common is the fact the both of you have friends to help you along the way. No one expects you to do this alone Korra. Not even my father with all his power would be able to handle the Equalists alone."

"But who would I have helping me? Avatar Aang had Master Katara, Sokka, Toph, and so many other people to help him. I only have you guys, and as great as you guys are, none of you can help me fight them. The kids are all too young and none of them are strong enough, Pema has to take care of them all, and you're the only form of defense they have. I have no one who can help me."

"You have Mako and Bolin."

Korra gave a half-hearted "hmph" before speaking.

"Bolin probably hates me, after what happened to his brother. And Mako…"

_'He may not be alive.'_

* * *

"We're here, we're here! Ikki shouted while bouncing up and down on the boat.

_'Does she even realize how much danger we might be in right now?' _Korra thought.

"Shh! Not so loud, Ikki!" Jinora hushed her in a whisper. "Who knows what might be hiding here."

"Jinora's right." Tenzin said. "We all need to be very, _very_ quiet. We don't want _anyone_ to be aware of our presence."

"That's why we rode the ferry right?" Korra asked.

"Exactly. A ferry is much less noticeable than a giant Flying Bison."

"And seeing as how it's in the dead of night, and this ferry blends in so well with the darkness, we're pretty well hidden from anyone who might be looking." Jinora added.

"Precisely."

* * *

"There's no one inside." Korra confirmed as she stood in front of the ferry. "Your house is empty. But judging by the condition it's in, I'd guess that it's been visited at least once by some very unhappy Equalists.

"They were probably looking for you." Jinora said.

"Yeah, probably. They were probably planning on recapturing me the minute they let me escape."

"Why would they do that?" Ikki asked.

"They wanted to capture her again so they could somehow make her to go into the Avatar State so they could kill her, thus ending the Avatar Cycle forever. And they were going to use Mako to help them achieve that." Jinora answered.

Korra looked down, suddenly feeling sad again.

"Yeah…"

"Come on, everyone. Let's go inside." Tenzin said, rushing to get everyone out of sight.

_'If anyone sees us now, it'll be the end of everything we've worked for.'_

"Korra."

"Yes Tenzin?"

"Burn the Ferry."

"What? Why?"

"We can't give away any clues that we're here. We have to stay hidden. That Water Tribe ferry will only give us away."

"Right."

Korra immediately shot a large blast of fire at it, burning it into nothing instantly. After that, she quickly rushed inside.

"So what're you gonna do now?" Ikki asked. "Are you gonna do the same thing as before?"

"That's a good question. Korra, what _are_ you going to do tomorrow?" Tenzin asked.

Korra looked up at him from across the table.

"I'm gonna look for Bolin."

**A/N Sorry it's short! It just seemed so right to end it there! After all, Avatar the Last Airbender ended like that a lot too! ****By the way, I just decided that their fourth child didn't make it. It was a still-born.**


	4. Nightmares and Disguises

"_Amon, you bastard! I'll make you pay for what you did!"_

_Korra stood in a dark room with her worst enemy. He laughed quietly at her._

"_Ha-ha. We'll see, Avatar Korra. I'll make you suffer the way I did your friend."_

_Just then, everything went dark. She was surrounded by complete darkness. At first, she thought she was alone. That is, until she heard a very familiar voice._

"_Korra! Korra, help me!"_

"_Mako!"_

_She looked around frantically._

"_Mako, where are you!"_

_Everything went black again. Suddenly, she found herself trapped in some torture chamber, strapped to a metal table._

"_Suffer, Korra. Suffer like the worthless bender you are."_

* * *

"Augh!"

Korra woke up screaming, panting and in cold sweat. Tenzin came rushing in.

"Korra! Korra, are you alright?!"

She looked up at him from where she sat on her bed.

"Yeah, Tenzin. I'm fine. It was just a dream."

_'It was just a dream.'_

He sighed.

"Thank goodness. I thought you'd been attacked already."

"No. I'm fine Tenzin. Really."

He seemed to hesitate before answering.

"Alright. If you're sure alright."

He turned to leave and started to exit the room. Before closing the door, he spoke.

"You'd better get some sleep. You'll need to wake up early so you can find your friend. And don't forget that Pema is going to get you into a disguise before you go."

"Right. Good night Tenzin."

"Good night Korra."

After that, he left, and Korra was all alone again. She looked over at Naga, who was lying on the ground next to her bed.

"Oh Naga, what am I gonna do?"

Naga simply lowered her head in defeat.

"I don't know either."

She sighed and looked away.

_'These nightmares won't go away. They keep coming back, and it feels like they're getting worse all the time.'_

She looked up at the ceiling.

_'And what am I gonna do about Bolin? I'm almost certain he hates me after what happened. I need his help, but I'm not sure that he'll be willing to give me that help.'_

She looked down again and hugged her knees to her chest.

_'What if I can't even find him? What if he's already lost his bending? What if…'_

She struggled to fight off tears.

_'What if he's been killed?'_

* * *

"Korra! Are you up yet?" Pema called down the hall. "Breakfast is almost ready!"

"Yeah! Just one second!"

Korra finished putting her hair up and went to pet Naga.

"Naga, I want you to protect everyone while I'm gone. Just like you would at home, okay? These guys are our family now, and we can't let anything happen to them."

Naga gave a deep sounding "woof" in response.

"Good girl. Now come on. Let's go get some food."

* * *

"Hold still Korra! I'm almost done!"

"Ugh, can't I just go like this?"

"No, you can't. People will recognize your face."

Pema continued to add make-up to Korra's face, while trying in vain to make her sit still.

"Sit still!"

"I _am_ sitting still!"

_'Well, it's nice to know she hasn't _completely _changed.' _Pema thought.

"Just sit still for a little longer, Korra. I'm almost done."

"What are you _doing_ anyway?"

"Applying a mask."

"Huh?"

"She's making a skin mask!" Ikki practically shouted.

"A skin mask? What's that?"

"A skin mask is a mask made out of artificial skin, that's meant to look like real skin." Jinora explained.

"Oh." Korra said, not really getting it, but deciding not to ask any further questions.

A few minutes later, she was finished.

"Done." Pema said, sitting back and admiring her work.

"Wow! She looks like a different person!" Ikki exclaimed, once again bouncing up and down.

"That's the point." Pema explained gently.

"Oh! Can I have a mask too? Can you make Jinora one? Can you make us both super pretty masks and make them the same so we'll be twins and no one can tell us apart? And can you-"

"That's enough Ikki." Pema said. But upon seeing her daughter's now sad face she added: "I'll make you a mask later, I promise."

"Yay! Jinora and I'll be twins!"

Jinora looked up from her book and looked at Ikki across the table.

"I never agreed to that."

Ikki ignored her, and continued cheering until finally, she thought of something to do and left for room.

"I'm gonna head out now." Korra said, standing up from the table.

"Alright. Be careful. And make sure your mask stays in place."

"Right."

Korra started to leave when Tenzin suddenly entered the room.

"Korra, wait!"

"Tenzin?"

"I want you to take this with you, just in case."

He handed her something in a small pouch. She looked down at the pouch in her hand. She then looked back up at Tenzin.

"What is it?" She asked.

"It's a pill."

"A pill?"

"Yes. You should take it if someone tries to block your chi. It gives you temporary immunity to chi blocking. There's only one pill though. I recommend that you use it when you face Amon."

"Right. Thanks Tenzin."

"You're welcome. Now get going. Unless you want to be searching in the dead of night for your friend, you should go now."

"Right."

And with that, she was gone.

_'Bolin, I sure hope I can find you.'_

She ran off to the cliff and jumped into the water, careful to make sure no one was watching. Using her waterbending to help her move faster. She also carefully moved all the water from her face, so she didn't ruin her mask. When she finally made it to shore she climbed out, her poor person costume was completely soaked. She didn't realize that someone was there until she stood up.

"Why were you in the water?" A male voice said.

"Huh? Oh, I uh, I kind of fell in."

"Funny, I didn't see that."

_'That voice…!'_


	5. Reunited At Last

'_That voice…!'_

She looked up.

_'Bolin?'_

Bolin looked her up and down, seemingly thinking about something.

"Why are you all wet?"

"Oh, I, um, I fell in."

"That's funny. I didn't see you fall…"

"Yeah, that is funny…"

"You know, I had a friend who liked to swim down there a lot."

"Really?"

"Yeah. She left a long time ago though."

"I'm so sorry."

"Me too."

After that, he turned around and started to walk away. But before he could get very far, she grabbed his arm and turned him back around.

"Wait!"

"What?"

"What if I said I know where your friend is?"

"What? But- How could- I mean-"

"Bolin, it's me silly!"

It took him a minute to realize just who the woman in front of him really was. When it finally dawned on him, his eyes widened in shock and a giant Bolin-size smile spread across his face.

"No way! Is it really you? But how? I thought- I mean- You and Tenzin-"

Korra quickly put a finger up to silence him.

"Shh! We can't let anyone hear us!" She said in a hushed voice.

"Right. Come on, I know a place where we can talk."

**A/N Okay, crappy cliffhanger, I know. Sorry guys, but I have _major_ writer's block right now, and this was the best I could do.**


	6. Secrets Revealed

"It's so good to see you Korra! I thought you were like, gone forever!"

Korra laughed.

"I could never leave here for that long! I love this place, you know that!"

"I know, it's just, when the whole thing with the Equalists got out of control and you had to leave, a lot people said you weren't coming back." He said.

"Why would they think that?" She asked.

"I don't know. Probably because of… Because of what happened. You know… Before you left…" He said, looking down as he spoke.

Korra's mind immediately flashed back to the memory of seeing Mako's broken and battered form being tossed into a cell in that horrible dungeon as she escaped.

"Yeah…" She said.

There was silence for a moment. Then Korra spoke.

"How is he? Did he escape?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah. He escaped about six months ago."

"How is he?" She asked again.

"I guess you could say that he's doing fine. I mean, his isn't hurt or anything…"

"What do you mean? What do you mean you guess?"

Bolin sighed, sadness evident in his eyes.

"Korra, he's different than he was before. I'm not even sure he remembers me. Or you. Or anyone else. I've seen him Korra, he's changed. I'm not sure why, but I'm almost certain it's Amon's fault."

"Changed…?" Korra asked quietly. "How?"

"I don't know. It's just…He wasn't like this before. He still looks the same, but… I don't know. I can just tell he's different. Like, it doesn't even seem like he has any emotions anymore. And his bending…"

"What about it?" Korra pressed.

Bolin shook his head slowly, his eyes closed, and head tilted towards the floor.

"It's different too. I've only seen it once but… While he was fighting this huge group of Equalists, his fire suddenly turned black."

"Black?" Korra asked in shock.

"Yeah. I've heard that his lightning does the same thing. I don't know why though."

It took a moment before Korra realized what he had just said.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, WAIT. Did you just say _'lightning'_?" She asked, her eyes wider than normal.

"Yeah."

"Mako can bend _lightning_?"

"Yeah. So what?"

She sighed.

"Nothing, never mind."

* * *

"Mako's alive?" Tenzin asked in shock that night at dinner.

"According to Bolin… Yes." Korra said. "But… He said he's different from before."

"Different how?" Tenzin asked with his usual serious face.

Korra sighed sadly.

"Well to start with, he said that he doesn't seem to remember anyone. Or any_thing._ He said that he doesn't even seem to have any emotions anymore."

"No emotions? Is that even possible?" Pema asked worriedly.

"I don't know." Korra said with a small shrug.

"Go on." Tenzin said.

"And… He also mentioned something else. It was about his bending."

"His bending? They didn't take it away, did they?" Pema asked.

"No…"

"What about his bending?" Tenzin asked.

"He said that sometimes… When he's fighting… His fire turns black."

There was a stunned silence in the room. Everyone but Meelo sat there with shocked expressions. Even Jinora, who had looked up from her book, looked genuinely shocked.

"But… That's not possible… His fire shouldn't turn black like that…" Tenzin said, still looking shocked.

"It's not just his fire." Korra said. "_It's his lightning too._"

Once again, there was silence. Ikki quickly broke that silence, however.

"Mako's a lightning bender? That's cool!" She shouted, jumping into the air from her seat, and causing Jinora to roll her eyes.

Korra spoke again.

"Do you know why that happens?" She asked Tenzin.

"I'm sorry Korra. I don't know. I really don't know…" He said slowly. "But I'm almost certain Amon knows."


	7. Amon Might Know the Answer

"You think _Amon_ knows?" Korra practically snarled.

_'I swear, if he knows _anything _about this, I will _personally_ send him to hell and back to make him give me some answers!' _She seethed in her head.

"I'm not certain," Tenzin said, "but I think it's definitely a possibility. And besides, it sounds like none of this started happening until after Amon got a hold of him. If that's true, then it's very possible that Amon not only knows about it, but is actually the cause of it all in the first place."

Korra nodded.

"So what do we do?"

"Well, if what Bolin said is true and Mako really is still fighting the Equalists, even if he doesn't remember you, I think it would be wise to try to regain him as an ally. You've said yourself many times before that you were going to require his help if you were going to accomplish anything."

"Yeah, that's true. He's strong. Stronger than me, I'm sure. If I'm gonna take down Amon and the Equalists, I'll definitely need his help." She paused before continuing. "But the problem is, Bolin said that he's _changed_. A lot. He only gave me a vague idea of what he's like now. If he really has changed that much, I'm not sure that I'll be _able_ to regain his friendship, let alone convince him to help me fight the Equalists."

"I still think you should try."

Korra sighed.

"Alright." She said.

She had no idea how she was going to do this, but she knew she had to. She _had_ to try. For his sake. Not to mention everyone else's. She sighed inwardly. This was _not_ going to be easy. If anything, this was probably going to the hardest thing she'd ever have to do. But first of all, before she could do anything, she'd have to _find _him. And knowing Mako, that was easier said than done.

**A/N Sorry it's so short.**


	8. Help

_I want to remember, but I can't. I was barely even able to remember my own name when I first woke. I still remember how to bend, probably through instinct. I don't understand it. Why can't I remember anything? I've been trying to answer that ever since first woke up in that place. That place… It was awful. Like some kind of torture chamber. Why would I be in a place like that? I still don't know. I've been searching for answers, but so far, I haven't found any. I thought that maybe if I fight the ones who had been holding me captive there, I might find some answers. Still nothing. Maybe I'm not looking in the right place. Who knows. But I do know one thing: I'm going to keep fighting until I get some answers. I won't stop until I remember everything. No matter how painful it is._

* * *

_'I want to help him… But how?'_ Korra wondered as she lay in bed.

She'd been trying for hours to answer that question, and it was proving more difficult than she'd imagined. She already knew that she'd have to find him before she could do anything, but what would she do once she did? She shook her head in despair. She _hated _not knowing things, especially when it involved her friends.

_'Why can't I _think_?!' _She practically screamed in her head.

With a groan, she rolled over and let sleep overcome her. She didn't sleep well. All night long, she was plagued with nightmares. They were awful. The worst part was, some of her nightmares had actually happened. Some were still happening. She couldn't escape the nightmare. Not when the nightmare was real. Not when the nightmare was her actual life. She hated the fact that she couldn't escape. She hated the fact that her whole _life_ had become this one big nightmare. She hated a lot of things right now. But mostly, she hated her reality. She hated her reality because she knew that it would never leave her, and she could never leave it. Reality was forever. It was permanent. There was no escaping it. She could never get away from it. Never.

The next day, she decided to go out and see Bolin. If anyone could help her with Mako, it was him. After breakfast, she bid Tenzin and his family a short farewell, and set out to find Bolin. Immediately she decided to check out the arena. She'd heard quite a while back that it had been shut down, was closed off, and was no longer being used for anything. It was the perfect hiding place. Besides, the Equalists seemed absolutely oblivious to Bolin's existence as of late. And thank goodness for that too. She'd been so worried that they would go after him again once she was gone, and that no one would be able to save him. But luckily, they seemed to have forgotten about him, and she couldn't ask for anything more.

Once she got there, she kicked one of the old doors open and went inside. She snuck around the building, cautiously going around corners and constantly ready to blast fire in any stalker's face. When she finally made it to the staircase that led to the attic where Mako and Bolin used to live. She quickly but silently ran up the stairs to their room. When she finally made it up to the room, she looked around. It was empty. It was clear that no one had been there in a long time. The whole room was destroyed, and she guessed that it had been visited by the Equalists. Looking around, she spotted the staircase that led to the topmost floor. She slowly went up the stairs, still ready for someone to pop out at her. Once she made it upstairs, she spotted the huge windowsill where Mako used to love to sit. Forcing herself not to think about that right now, she continued her search for Bolin. Heading downstairs, she decided to check one last place for her friend. Moving as quickly and as silently as possible, she headed to the training room. Sure enough, Bolin was there, punching on a punching bag.

"Hey, Bolin!" She called.

He whirled around to face her, seeming ready to attack. He relaxed when he saw it was only her.

"Korra, don't scare me like that!" He said.

"Sorry." She said, walking up to him. "Didn't mean to scare you."

He sighed.

"It's alright. Anyway, do you need something?" He asked curiously.

"Yes, actually." She said. "Listen, I need your help. I'm going to need all the help I can get to fight the Equalists. I may be a fully realized Avatar, but I'm still not strong enough on my own. So I have two questions for you."

"Shoot." He said.

"First of all, would you be willing to help me? I'm definitely going to need you on my team."

He smiled.

"Come on, Korra. Did you even need to ask?"

She smiled back at him.

"No, I suppose not. But I still had to make sure."

"So what's your second question?" He asked.

Her face was serious again.

"Okay, so I told Tenzin everything you told me about Mako, and he said that I should try to regain him as an ally and have him help us fight the Equalists. And honestly, I agree."

She looked Bolin directly in the eye.

"I need your help finding him. I also need your help getting him back."

There was silence in the room for a moment.

"I'll do it." He said after a minute. "I'll be happy to help."

Korra smiled again.

"Really? That's great!" She said while tackling him in a hug, which he quickly returned. "Thank you." She murmured

"You're welcome." He replied.

**A/N Once again, awful cliffhanger, sorry. I got stuck after that, so yeah.**


	9. The Search Begins

"So where do we start?" Korra asked.

Bolin sighed.

"I have no idea. He could be anywhere." He said.

"We're just going to have to look everywhere then." Korra decided.

"Korra…"

"What?"

"You do realize how big the city is, right?"

"Yeah. So what?"

Bolin sighed again.

"Quit doing that." Korra said. "You sound just like Mako."

* * *

Korra and Bolin were walking around outside. Korra was wearing an old worn robe over her clothes. She had a dark hood pulled over her head to keep her face hidden. It wasn't as great of a disguise as the skin mask and the poor people clothes that Pema had made for her had been, but it was something. The two of them were wandering around the streets looking for any sign of Mako. So far they'd found nothing. This didn't stop them in their search, however. In fact, they'd _expected_ this. This _was_ Mako, after all. They knew right from the start that tracking him down was going to be anything but easy. The thought frustrated Korra, but she continued to search regardless. She was going to find him. _She had to._

As they were walking, they kept a very close eye out for him. Suddenly, a thought occurred to Korra. _It's been two years_. He more than likely looked different than he did before. Quickly, she turned to Bolin.

"Hey, what does Mako look like now? I mean, he's got to look at least a _bit_ different, right? After all, it's been two years."

"Yeah. He pretty much looks the same, except his clothes."

"What's different about his clothes?"

"Well, they look exactly the same, just black. Even the scarf."

"The scarf too?" She asked in disbelief.

He nodded.

"Yeah. I was surprised at first too."

"Okay, so now we've just got to find an emotionless fire bender whose fire and lightning can change colors, and is wearing all black. Sounds easy enough."

"Yeah right." Bolin scoffed.

"Oh come on Bolin, where's your imagination?" Korra joked.

"Uh… Ba Sing Se?" He guessed, with a shrug.

Korra laughed.

"Yeah. Or maybe it's in some box in Amon's secret lair." She joked.

They both shared a laugh.

After that, the two of them continued their search in silence. They walked all throughout the city, and turned up nothing. Korra continued to look around, even while Bolin was distracted by a large food cart selling his favorite meat. Shortly afterward, they started to look again.

"Any sign of him yet?" She asked eventually.

She really hoped that he would say "yes," though she knew that that was unlikely.

"Nope." He answered shortly.

She resisted a sigh. She knew he was going to say that. Why was this so hard? She'd expected that they were going to have some trouble, but this was ridiculous!

"Come on, it's getting late. Let's call it a night." Bolin suddenly said, snapping her out of her angry inward yelling.

"Yeah. See you tomorrow." She replied.

"Right."

After that, they parted ways. Korra raced back to the island as fast as she could. As she ran through the center of the city, she had no idea who she passed…


	10. Finally Found

**A/N Credit for this idea goes to Lizzy '-' rocks.**

A week passed, and still they found nothing. They'd checked everywhere that they could possibly think of, and they were running out of ideas. They had even gone so far as to check underground, but still nothing. After a few more days of searching, they were beginning to lose hope. But all of that changed at exactly midnight that night. They were walking along down a street in a deserted part of the city, when they suddenly heard a huge commotion.

"What's going on over there?" Korra asked, looking over to where all the noise was coming from.

"I don't know…" Bolin replied, following her gaze. "But we'd better check it out."

"Right."

The two of them quickly headed to the source of the noise, and discovered that there was a huge fight going on. There was a group of somewhere around twenty or thirty Equalists fighting against just one opponent. It wasn't until they saw a huge blast of fire that they realized exactly _who_ it was that they were fighting. They exchanged equally shocked looks, and then turned their attention back to the fight. They wanted to jump in and help, but they weren't sure if that was the best thing to do. Instead, they stood back a little ways and watched. A brief moment later, there was a flash of lightning, and all the Equalists that weren't unconscious fled for their lives, dragging the wounded and unconscious away with them. Korra stood there in shock when the crowd finally cleared. There, standing not fifty feet in front of her, was Mako. Someone she was almost certain she'd never see again. Even though Bolin had seen him once before, he seemed just as shocked. But even though they were shocked, they were also just as happy.

_'We finally found him…'_ Korra thought happily.

Without thinking, she took a step forward. She quickly jumped back however, when a blast of fire nearly hit her feet.

"Whoa!" She said as she jumped back.

When she landed she glared at Mako, who was watching her and Bolin with a hard gaze and a frown.

"What was that for?" She yelled.

He didn't respond, and just watched her.

"What's the matter with you? Don't you recognize us?"

She took another step forward, and it was the same thing all over again. He blasted fire at her, and she had to quickly jump back to avoid being hit. Feeling her anger surge, she blasted some fire back at him. He easily dodged, and shot some lightning at her. She quickly ducked, narrowly avoiding being hit.

"Korra! What are doing? Hey!" Bolin shouted, trying in vain to get her attention.

He was quickly distracted from this though, when he was nearly hit by a small blast of fire.

"Whoa!" He shouted while he raised a rock wall to protect himself. "Watch it guys!"

Before he knew it, he was caught up in the fight too. He wasn't really trying to fight, though. He was simply trying to make _them_ stop fighting. All too quickly, Bolin and Korra found themselves losing the fight, even though Korra was using _all_ the elements. But it wasn't making a difference. He dodged all of their attacks with ease, while they were struggling to land a blow. Somehow, after about an hour or so, they had managed to back him into an alleyway. They continued to back him farther down the alley, until he was backed up against the back wall. He still seemed ready to attack, and they kept their guard up while trying to get closer to him. As soon as they got close enough, he began to fight them again. He was still struggling against them, but not as fiercely as before. Now that she was close enough, Korra could see that he had a lot of serious wounds. Wounds that were more than likely affecting his fighting. Eventually, Bolin managed to use his earthbending to restrain him. Not surprisingly, he tried to use his fire and lighting to break free, but with Korra's help, they managed to keep him there. While they were holding him there, Korra turned her attention to Bolin.

"Why is he acting like this? It's like he doesn't even know us."

"Don't you remember? I told you already, he doesn't remember _anything._ Not even us."

Mako froze.

"How did you…?" He asked, seeming shocked.

He was looking at them with his usual serious, no nonsense look, and it brought back a lot of memories for Korra. She just wished she could do the same for him… After a brief moment of silence, she spoke.

"You're… probably not going to believe this, but… we know you. Very well. And you know us. Or at least… you used to. We used to be friends."

Mako frowned and looked away, clearly not believing her. With a sigh, Korra turned to Bolin, silently asking him for help. He looked at her sadly, and shrugged. He had no idea what to do either. Suddenly, Korra thought of something. It was the only way to reach him. If this didn't work, nothing would.

"We know why you were there." She said.

He looked at her.

"We know why you were trapped in that place. That… torture chamber."

He froze again, and his eyes widened slightly.

"Please… let us explain. I promise we're not going to hurt you. We're not like those guys. If you come with us, we'll explain everything."

They released him, and, though he seemed reluctant, he followed them as they started to walk to the arena. Korra inwardly sighed.

_'This is not going to be easy.' _Korra thought as she led the way to the arena where they were going to talk.

And it was true. Even though they'd finally found him, they were still so many things that they had to do before they could even _think_ about trying to get him to join them. _He didn't trust them._ That much was clear. She sighed out loud. This was probably going to be one of the hardest things she'd ever had to do for a friend.


	11. Explaining Things

They were sitting down in the arena. They were up in the attic where Mako and Bolin used to live. It was clear he didn't recognize it. He'd looked around a little with his eyes, but beyond that he seemed uninterested in the place. Korra had a feeling that he was mostly checking for danger anyway. She sighed a little.

"So… where do I start?"

Mako looked at her but otherwise didn't respond.

"I guess I should introduce myself… My name is Korra. I'm the Avatar. Do you… remember what that is?"

Mako seemed to think about it for a moment before nodding slowly. Korra smiled a little.

'_Good… That's one less thing for me to explain…'_

"Um… My name's Bolin. I'm an Earth Bender, and your brother."

Mako blinked in both surprise and confusion.

"Brother…?"

Bolin nodded. Korra could see the hope in his eyes. The hope that somehow he would remember. That the old Mako that they knew and loved would come back to them. But they both knew that that was impossible. Especially after being through everything that he had… Korra looked at Mako.

"You may want to get comfortable. This may take a while…"

She and Bolin spent the next few hours telling him about everything the three of them had been through together. Korra ended by telling him_ exactly_ why he'd been there in that dungeon. She didn't leave anything out. He needed to know the truth. _The whole truth._ She wouldn't look up from the ground after that. He hated her, she was sure of it. When she finally looked up, she was shocked to see that there was no anger in his eyes. He looked thoughtful. She didn't understand. Why wasn't he angry?

"Is anything that we told you familiar at all?" Bolin asked hopefully.

Korra held her breath while waiting for his response. A wave of sadness hit her when he shook his head. He didn't remember…

'_I should have expected this…' _She thought sadly.

"Are you… mad at me?" She asked quietly after a moment of silence.

He looked at her, seeming almost… confused.

"Why?"

"Because… Because of me…" She said, forcing back tears.

He tilted his head slightly.

"It's all my fault! I'm the reason why you ended up there! Amon was after me… Not you… He was trying to use you as bait to get me…" She burst out as the tears began to flow.

"That's not your fault…" He said.

He was looking down at the floor now, and he seemed uncertain as to whether or not he actually believed that.

"Yes it is! If I hadn't been so reckless Amon never would've captured me in the first place! Then none of this would've happened!"

"Yes it would."

Korra and Bolin stared at him in shock and confusion.

"Amon would have found away to capture you anyway. He wouldn't have stopped until he found a way."

"But…"

Mako looked at her with his old serious, "no nonsense" look. It nearly made her cry more.

"Even if things had happened differently on that day, he still would have found you. He still would've captured you. _He had a plan, Korra._ He'd made a trap he knew you wouldn't be able to break free from."

"How do you know?" Bolin asked.

Mako's voice was quieter when he replied. Almost as if he was afraid of getting hurt if he spoke too loudly.

"When I broke out… I saw it. I heard him talking about it somewhere down some hall. But it was heavily guarded, so I didn't go near it."

"You just focused on getting out, right?"

He nodded. Without warning, Korra threw her arms around him in a fierce hug.

"I'm glad you did. I'm so, so glad…"


End file.
